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Norman Turrell

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...and by shorts, I don't mean the miniature trouser. I mean short stories of course. I always have several short stories on the go, and this is why...
Practice
Although writing a short story is a different discipline to writing a novel—and normally has specific requirements for structure and delivery—all writing is good practice. Some of my short stories don't make the grade as a complete

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I always think my work is brilliant, don't you? Think your work is brilliant, I mean, not mine. Well, perhaps we don't, not all the time.
I'm well aware I'm too close to my writing to have a rounded opinion about how things are going. I know everything about my story and can't see the holes; where I haven't related it effectively. Telling your story to others is the point, isn't it? That's

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A pantser is somebody who doesn’t like planning - flying by the seat of their pants.
Personally, I like planning my novels. There you are. I've said it. There's nothing more pleasurable to me than playing with my story concept and structuring it in all sorts of different ways. It helps me craft a more solid work:
I avoid time-consuming writing of work which won't eventually fit
I make sure

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When you get that precious time in your day to do your writing, you want to make the most of it. Preparation will help you with that. Let’s start with some great quotes from some great people on the importance of preparation, so we’re in no doubt of its importance:
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” - Benjamin Franklin
“He who is best prepared can best serve his moment

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Although most of your work is done in your writer’s nook, you need to get out and about for your sanity and your health. But that doesn’t mean you stop working.
The world is full of inspiration for your writing. Whatever your genre, you need to generate real places and believable characters, and that will come so much easier if you have your brain full of experiences and senses.
Here’s

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Ever get the feeling you’ve really enjoyed the book you just read, but you’re not sure why?
Writers are always looking for beta readers. These are people who will read their work before publication and comment on it. They want your opinion of whether they have a best seller… or not. Beta readers aren’t providing editor type feedback (although an author will take it if you’re offering it free I’m

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I hear authors saying how they've added X thousands of people to their e-mail list, but is that a good thing? It might be, but what if you imagine them as an audience, sitting there, staring as you stand on the stage? Are you prepared?
Here's a quick intro you can skip if you already know all about e-mail lists:
An e-mail list is a list of personal addresses that people have given to you with

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Continuing on from my previous post about three types of author bio, this one's about the content.
Apart from the personal information you include in your long bio, it's all about achievements and qualifications. Firstly, the ones that you state will need to be relevant to your audience for this particular bio. With fiction you need other fiction achievements. With non-fiction you need

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“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.” - Stephen King
“Good artists copy; great artists steal.” - Picasso (allegedly)
“Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different.” - T. S. Elliot.
“I write because I read. I read